Can You Save Me
by Shaelynn Stark
Summary: Phil is sent on-loan to the CIA to work for his baby sister on her current op, leaving former DCS Arthur Campbell in charge of his team in his absence. From the moment he leaves, Skye senses something will go terribly wrong with his op. Is she paranoid or is it some form of woman's intuition? Skye/Coulson pairing. Read & review, please!


**Can You Save Me**

**Disclaimer:  
**I own nothing.

**Rating:  
**T (Just 'cause I'm paranoid + I never really know where I'm gonna end up when I start writing...)

**Genre:  
**Romance/Hurt/Comfort

**Pairing:  
**Coulsye (Coulson/Skye)

**Lyrics Used:  
**Zendaya "Scared"

**Author's Note:  
**So, I'm still toying around with names for this pairing (Skye/Coulson)...Any ideas? I'm open to suggestions. But, until I find something better, I'm sticking with 'Coulsye'.

**Author's Note (2):  
**I took a _weeeee_ little bit of creative license. I've taken the _Covert Affairs _character, Annie Walker, and made her Phil's baby sister, Annie _Coulson_. ... And, I gave Phil a _really _embarrassing middle name...Just 'cause I thought it'd be funny given the context of that scene...You'll see...

* * *

Scared

* * *

_Baby, I can't live without you | I'm slowly dyin' | Baby, without you, I'm scared_

_I just wanna love ya, I just wanna love ya | I just wanna love ya, I just wanna love ya | Scared of what it feels like to be alone_

_Scared of what it feels like to miss ya | Scared of what it feels like not to kiss ya | Scared of what it feels like to be alone_

_(I'm scared...I'm scared...I'm scared...I'm scared)_

___You leave | Just me | These walls watching me bleed | I'm screamin' | I'm hurtin' | I'm beggin' you for mercy_

_No you | No me | It's just the shadows I see | No savior | Hail Mary | Who's gonna rescue me?_

* * *

"Who the hell are _you_?!" Skye demanded from the open door to her boss and mentor, Agent Phil Coulson's, office. Although, the man and woman she found currently occupying said office were very much _not _Agent Coulson.

"I'm Agent Coulson." The woman replied. Looking at her, Skye noticed she appeared to be between five-ten and six foot in height, athletic build-this woman clearly worked out at _least_ as hard as Agent Ward worked Skye-if not harder, with shoulder length brown hair. _She kinda looks a _little _like AC...Maybe like a sister or something..._Skye silently assessed. The man, on the other hand, was taller with a broader build-not heavy, definitely more muscular-and appeared to be at _least _ten years older. _Definitely no relation to this new chick or AC._

"Bullshit." Skye argued. "I know Agent Coulson-first of all, he's a man. And, unless you got some freaky-ass secret you wanna share, 'Agent Coulson'..." Skye sneered, pausing briefly, crossing her arms over her chest, readying herself for a confrontation. "Then, you're lying." Little did Skye know, the Agent Coulson _she _knew and worked with was standing not three feet behind her, watching the exchange with an amused smirk on his face. "And, you?" She added, tilting her chin toward the older man in the office. "What lies _you _wanna try to sell me?" She asked, challengingly.

"I'm Arthur Campbell." The older man introduced himself, his voice firm and stance daring the young hacktivist to challenge him. "I'll be filling in for Agent Coulson on a temporary basis. So, for the time-being...I'm your new boss."

"Wow..." Skye replied, sarcastically. "You two are real pieces of work. You _really _think you're gonna fool me with those lies, don't you?"

"They're not lies." Phil interjected, finally taking mercy on his young protege.

Whipping around in her place at his doorway, Skye's eyes widened in shock as she stared directly into the face of her AC. "AC?" She asked, clearly confused. "What are you...Who are these people in your office?"

Joining Skye in his own doorway, Phil replied "They're exactly who they say they are." He began cryptically. "This young woman is my baby sister, Agent Annie Coulson, from the Central Intelligence Agency-"

Whipping back around to face the strangers in Coulson's office, Skye interjected. "You're with the CIA?!" Turning back to AC, she added "You have a sister?!"

"You just _love_ sticking that 'baby' label on the 'sister' title, don't you, Phil?" Annie countered, striding across the room to stand next to her older brother.

"What else would you call a sister ten years younger than you?" Phil quipped. "And, yes, I do." He added, fondly, as he turned his attention back to the young hacktivist at his side. "And, this-" Phil gestured toward the other man in the office. "-is her former boss, Arthur Campbell. Arthur used to work for the CIA as well-he was their DCS for several years."

"'DCS'?" Skye asked, curiously.

"Director of Clandestine Services." Arthur replied, proudly. "One of the three public faces of the CIA."

"Okay, so...Who wants to tell me what the _hell's _goin' on, here?" Skye wondered. "And, just how in the hell did you get on the plane?"

"How we got here is irrelevant." Arthur replied, cryptically, not settling any of Skye's concerns.

"That's Arthur's way of saying 'It's a spy thing'." Annie translated, still not _really _addressing any of Skye's questions. "And, we're here because I will be borrowing my brother for an op at Langley." _Finally, we're getting somewhere._ Skye thought to herself. "Given that the details of the op are classified, all I'm at liberty to say is that the operative we _intended_ to use for this op found a bomb in his car...The hard way." Skye couldn't have stopped the involuntary cringe at that response if her life had depended on it. "And, since good field operatives are hard to find-particularly on less than a moment's notice...S.H.I.E.L.D. has agreed to give us my brother on loan for the duration of this mission. Since we don't even want to _think _about the repercussions of allowing the lunatics to run _this _multi-billion dollar asylum, Mr. Campbell has graciously agreed to fill in for my brother while he's away."

Skye was on high alert. She didn't like the idea of the man that she had secretly fallen for being whisked away to God knows where for God knows long. The mere thought of it all didn't sit well with her. "You're leaving us?" She asked, incredulously, turning her attention to Phil.

"Temporarily." Phil reassured her. He could see the fear written in her soft doe eyes and tried to bring her whatever comfort he could without divulging sensitive intel. "I'll return to the bus as soon as the op's over." He added, resting what he hoped would be a comforting hand on her shoulder.

Skye understood what AC was trying to do and definitely appreciated his efforts. But, that still didn't mean she had to like the situation as a whole. "So...Where are you going?" She asked, her voice uncharacteristically timid.

"That's classified." Annie interjected. She knew all about this young woman. She also knew how fond her older brother was of the young hacktivist. She hated putting this kind of strain on their tenuous relationship, but, she knew she had no choice.

Glancing back and forth between Phil and Annie, Skye's gaze landed upon the older Coulson, once again, as she asked "H-How long are you gonna be gone?" Her voice was growing smaller with each passing question. Phil hated the effects this op would have on Skye, but, his hands were tied. He knew, in his heart, that if there were any other operatives fit for this assignment at her disposal, that's where Annie would be at that moment. But, before he could try to comfort Skye, his sister cut him off, again.

"That's classified." Annie stated, repeating her previous response.

"Okay, ya know what, I've had it with you!" Skye half-shouted, the stress of everything finally taking its toll on her. "Your brother's a big boy! He can speak for himself!"

"Skye, as much as it _pains _me to admit it..." Phil began, his voice only half-joking. Though, he did enjoy the glare from his younger sister. "Annie's right. The details of this op are extremely sensitive. I'm afraid I can't share of them with you. Sadly...My hands are tied." He admitted, his voice uncharacteristically resigned and an equally uncharacteristic sadness in baby blue eyes.

Skye saw the look in Phil's eyes and ached for it. She hated the situation. She hated everything _about _it. She hated that Phil was leaving them. She hated that his _own sister_ was taking him from them. She hated that nobody was telling her where he was going or when he would be back. Reacting defensively, she glared at Annie and fired back "I hacked _S.H.I.E.L.D. _from my _van-_from a laptop I won in a bet! You do realize that-with all this tech around here-I could _easily _hack the CIA in my _sleep_!"

Staring directly into the eyes of the young hacker, Annie coolly replied "Not with your little fashion accessory, there, you can't." Glancing down to the glowing bracelet around her wrist, Skye mentally cursed herself. _Damn it! Completely forgot about the stupid thing!_ Understanding where Skye's attitude was coming from, Annie softened her voice to a warmer, gentler tone as she spoke sincerely. "Look, Skye...I understand your concerns, really I do. _Nobody_ is more concerned with my brother's safety than I. I give you my word...I will do _whatever it takes _to bring my brother back to you in _exactly _the same condition in which I borrowed him."

Skye looked directly into the eyes of the older spy before her. Deep down, she knew that spies like AC and Annie _never _dropped their guard the way that Annie was, right now. She knew she could trust the vow Annie had just made to her. But, one last thing still bothered her. "How do you know my name?"

"Well, from the attitude you gave us, it was the only logical assumption." Annie replied, simply, as if it were plain as day.

"My 'attitude'?" Skye demanded, harshly. "Whaddo you mean, my 'attitude'?!"

"My brother talks." Annie shrugged, chuckling slightly at the glare from her older brother. "Especially about you. He's really quite fond of you-"

The younger Coulson was soon cut off by the sound of someone angrily clearing their throat. Looking over at her brother, she couldn't resist snickering at the ever so slight pink tinge to his cheeks. "We really should be going, now, _Anne Catherine_!" Phil attempted to snarl angrily, knowing how much his baby sister hated her full first and middle names. But, the agent failed miserably as his voice cracked and squeaked not unlike that of a teenage boy going through puberty.

"All _right_, we're going..." Annie paused before a wicked smirk played across her face. "Phillip _Quilliam_..." The younger Coulson knew she was taking a sick amount of pleasure from her brother's embarrassment, but, he really brought it upon himself, revealing her own middle name. "Hey, you opened the door, I just waltzed right in..." She added, holding her hands up in mock surrender before sobering up enough to tend to business. "In all seriousness, though...I'll give you a moment to say your goodbyes. You can meet me at the car." She spoke, her voice soft and warm, as she rubbed her brother's shoulder supportively.

As the younger Coulson took her leave, Skye returned her focus to her AC, and did what she did best when she was upset or worried about something. She made a joke. "So...Your middle name's really '_Quilliam_'?" She asked, disbelievingly.

"Don't _ever _say that name, again..." Phil warned the young hacker with a subtle snarl in his voice which would have terrified a stranger. However, the playful glare in his eyes gave him away.

"Noted." Skye replied, mimicking Phil's own classic go-to response, as a playful smirk played across her lips before her face fell-along with every last one of her defenses. "So...That's it, then?" She asked, her voice far more pathetic than she would ever admit to.

Stepping closer to the young hacker, Phil set his duffel bag at his feet before placing a hand on either of Skye's shoulders. "I promise you...I _will _come back." Something about the solemnity in Phil's voice made Skye actually believe him. This was Phil Coulson, after all. Quite possibly the only man on the face of the planet that could ever survive being 'shanked by the Asguardian Mussolini' to use his own words. _If he could survive that, he can survive, anything...Right?_ Skye tried to reason all of her fears and worries away.

Finally meeting his gaze, Skye replied weakly "I'm holding you to that, ya know..."

Phil saw the tears beginning to well up in the young hacktivist's warm doe eyes and he ached for them. To be perfectly honest, he hated the situation every bit as much as she did. He hated to be leaving Skye in any fashion. But, the secrecy of the whole situation just made it that much worse. "That's what I'm counting on." He replied, yearning to take the young woman who had unknowingly stolen his heart into his arms just once before he left. However, he didn't dare make such a display in front of Arthur Campbell-or anyone else, for that matter. It was too risky; especially given that he wasn't at all certain of Skye's feelings toward him. Deciding it was safest to take his leave before he did something stupid like kissing her, Phil reluctantly released his grip on her shoulders as he picked up his duffel bag and swiftly made a silent exit.

Watching AC leave, Skye just couldn't shake the feeling deep within her gut that something was going to go horribly wrong with..._whatever _project Phil was going to be assigned. Instead, she decided it would be best to distract herself with something else. Turning her attention back to the only other remaining occupant in the office, Skye asked "So...You're our new boss, huh?"

"Yes." Arthur replied, his voice purely professional-almost clinical. "However, I believe you'll find me to be somewhat less uptight than Agent Coulson. For starters, you can call me 'Arthur'." He added in what he hoped was a more friendly voice, as he strode across the office to offer his hand to the young hacktivist.

"Yeah..." Skye began, hesitantly. "First thing you should probably know about me...Not really a handshake kinda girl." Skye corrected. "Secondly...The whole 'less uptight' thing...Yeah, that remains to be seen. Doesn't really take much to be less uptight than AC." She countered, recalling all the times AC had insisted she call him either Agent Coulson or just Coulson...Even though she could tell, deep down, that he actually enjoyed her pet name for him.

"Right, well..." Arthur began, awkwardly. "Why don't you go and get the rest of your team together and we'll get on with the rest of our formalities?" Arthur suggested, just as awkwardly. Realizing that she would **much **rather be _anywhere _else, at the moment, Skye just nodded wordlessly as she took off in search of her teammates.

* * *

**Author's Note (3):  
**Well, there's the first chapter. I had originally intended to do a one-shot, but, I felt like I was starting to ramble (I'm kinda prone to that) so I decided to make it a chapter fic. I do better with chapters, I feel like. So, I hope you enjoyed this introductory chapter. Please read and review! And, add me as an alert if you _really _like it! ;)


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